BY -- BRIAN SZTABNIK
The East Meadow senior, who finished second in his weight class in the county last season, won it this year (135 pounds) at the Nassau County qualifier at Nassau Community College on Feb. 16 and 17, proving so superior that he pinned his opponent in the final.
While the feat of winning his weight class was impressive, what was even more awesome of a spectacle was that Deluca either pinned or won all his matches by technical fall.
He knocked down opponents like they were bowling pins, advanced to the State championships next Friday and Saturday in Syracuse and capped a successful weekend in which the Jets finished third as a team behind MacArthur (ranked No. 1 in the state) and Massapequa (ranked fifth in the state).
Even though six MacArthur wrestlers won their weight class, a feat that may be the most impressive in Nassau County sports this school year, East Meadow showed just how strong its program was, placing nine of its 17 wrestlers that qualified, the most of any team. Placing means you finish in the top six in your weight class. The only way to move on to the state championships is to win your weight class.
Those nine wrestlers have formed the crux of East Meadow's success this season, and for their achievement, they will be distinguished as All-County in their weight class. They are: Al Tropiano (sophomore, 96 pounds; fifth-place finish), Spencer Cook (freshman, 103 pounds; fourth-place finish), Jordi Castillo (senior, 103 pounds; fifth-place finish), Pete Peikidis (senior, 130 pounds; fifth-place finish), Chris Deluca (senior, 135 pounds; first-place finish), Anthony Sbrocco (senior, 145 pounds; fifth-place finish), Assaf Gal (senior, 152 pounds; fourth-place finish), Matt Deluca (freshman, 160 pounds; fourth-place finish) and Greg Dalton (senior, 275 pounds; third-place finish).
"It was a great day for East Meadow wrestling," said head coach Tom Reynolds. "Those nine guys are the most that have ever placed in my time with the program. It was a total team effort. Our seniors really stepped up and did well and some of our younger guys showed some real promise for next year. It was a great experience for them."
While Reynolds is quick with praise for his wrestlers' success, he is just as swift to point out the effectiveness of his coaching staff, whose dedication, hard work and devotion have made the Jets' season what it has been.
"I really got to give credit to my coaching staff," said Reynolds. "Ray Downey, Mike Leonard and Sam Joseph have done a great job all season. Their help has been tremendous. We are going to make sure he [DeLuca] ready for the State Championship."
Reynolds and the entire staff will join Deluca in Syracuse in his quest to take a state title. They'll have a cheering section to keep them company as many East Meadow wrestlers have expressed in making the trip to root their teammate on. It is a chance for East Meadow to celebrate a wrestler who has come to define what the program stands for -- skill, sacrifice, hard work and achievement.
